TV Gal Puts Out a Call for Categories

I had dinner the other day with a friend who asked me if "Lost" is a reality show. I remained calm and explained the premise of the show. She replied, "Oh, like 'Gilligan's Island'?"

I dated a guy who didn't think "Arrested Development" was funny. (I know, I know. This should have been my first warning sign.)

My own sister has never seen an episode of "Veronica Mars."

I try to bring up my utter outrage towards the new CW channel at cocktail parties and no one knows what I'm even talking about.

But you. You are my people.

Who else but you would play my reindeer games? What's up with all the Logans on TV? How is it possible that Currie Graham has been on practically every show this season? What was George Eads thinking with that hairstyle? Isn't that Desmond on "24"?

Who else but you would send me sympathy cards when "Everwood" was canceled? Understand that Luke Perry is reason enough to watch "Windfall." Think of me when "Grey's Anatomy" finally made sense of that Super Bowl shower scene.

Believe me when I tell you that there are very few people to whom I can say, "Can you believe Pam's boyfriend was Skip?" and they'll know exactly what I mean. With you, I can start in the middle of the TV conversation.

As I said, you are my people.

But one thing I've learned over my nine years (can you believe that?) of writing this column is that I can't make everyone happy. Like all friends, we have our differences. Perhaps I love shows you don't (some of you can't take it anymore with all my talk of "Lost") and am infuriatingly indifferent to shows you adore (honestly I'm surprised fans of "NCIS" are still speaking to me). Maybe I talk too much about actors you can't stand or not enough about your favorite stars.

So once a year I try to rectify this situation with the Amy Awards -- where you control every aspect of the awards. You pick the categories. You pick the nominees. And you pick the winners. Me? I simply tally the results.

First you have to decide on the 12 Amy Award categories. You have until Thursday, June 15 at 9 p.m. ET to post your Amy Award category suggestions to the TV Gal graffiti board. Here's the 2006 Amy Awards schedule.

June 19, 2006: The announcement of the 12 Amy Award categories and call for nominationsJune 26: The announcement of the Amy Award nomineesJuly 3, 2006: The announcement of the Amy Award winners

Now, remember this isn't the award show for boring categories like Best Actress, so be creative and be fun. To get you started, here's a sample category from a previous Amy Awards -- "I Don't Love to Hate You, I Just Hate You or Worst Character." I'm sure readers from last year will show you how it's done.

So let's get this party started. These are your awards so hear let's hear you roar. Post your categories to the TV Gal graffiti board by Thursday, June 15 at 9 p.m. ET and tune in next week for the announcement of the 2006 Amy Award categories and the call for nominations.

Quotes of the Week

"I love you too. I knew it then. I know it now. I'll know it always. You're it Amy. You're my one." Ephram to Amy in the series finale of "Everwood." Sigh.

"I don't know. I think this president could handle a bow and arrow." Jim on "Commander In Chief" is a nod to Geena Davis's real-life skill in archery (remember she qualified for the Olympics). Thanks to Josh and Matt for the quote.

I am so excited that "The Closer" is returning for a second season Monday at 9 p.m. on TNT. Kyra Sedgwick's true gift is that she makes all of Brenda's idiosyncrasies work (let's hope we hear her name come Emmy time). Plus she's one of the few real woman on TV -- she's still a little afraid of her mom, has a love/hate relationship with sugar, continues to struggle with her wardrobe, and his afraid that once her boyfriend gets to know her, he'll stop liking her. For it's not the crimes that make this show worth watching, it's the unique way Brenda goes about getting to the truth. All that plus G.W. Bailey's hilarious Detective Provenza.

You absolutely must watch the second season premiere and let me know what you think.

Save "Everwood"

So it's probably time to let go of the dream of a fifth season of "Everwood." And the delightfully perfect series finale did wrap everything up quite nicely. Perhaps even too nicely. Here's hoping Hannah changes her mind and goes to Notre Dame.

But I'm not ready to give up hope yet. And thankfully, neither are you. There are two campaigns I want to tell you about. At www.ponderosapinecones.com, fans are mailing pinecones and at www.everwoodmusic.com, they're working on a very elaborate Ferris wheel stunt.

Highlights of the Week AheadAll times listed are Eastern Time for June 12 to 18

What hath "Desperate Housewives" wrought? CBS tries to capitalize on Wisteria Lane by offering up a real life version. Seven women from Scottsdale, Arizona get together every Tuesday night to dish the dirt in "Tuesday Night Book Club" premiering Monday at 10 p.m. on CBS.

Tom Everett Scott stars in the new TNT series "Saved" (premiering Monday at 10 p.m.). Scott is compelling as the seriously troubled paramedic Wyatt Cole and I love seeing Henry from "What I Like About You" again but somehow the series still feels far too familiar.

So this is the episode where "Rescue Me" (Tuesday, FX, 10 p.m.) really went off course for me this season. Can you figure out why?

Who was Frank Flynn? Did you miss a single second of "24"? For the first time, FOX is actually repeating a season of the series. This seems like a smart move to bring a whole new audience to the show. So if you've never watched "24" before now's your chance. FOX will repeat the entire season in two back-to-back episodes every Friday at 8 p.m.

Who knows what is up with HBO lately? The "season finale" of "The Sopranos" was a nonevent. Honestly, I find it so conceited that they the show runners think it is okay to have a finale where basically nothing happened. They already tested our patience by having the show missing in action for nearly two years and this is their thanks for our loyalty? A Christmas Eve dinner? But mostly I feel terrible that I didn't warn you that under no circumstances should you watch "Lucky Louie" (Sunday at 10:30 p.m. on HBO). The show is like "According to Jim" with vulgar language and bare behinds. Just because you can use crude words to describe the human anatomy, doesn't necessarily mean you should. Thankfully "Entourage" (Sunday, HBO, 10 p.m.) continues to be a sheer delight. Vince has his "Almost Famous" moment when "Aquaman" opens. And I've promised the fans of "Deadwood" (Sunday, HBO, 9 p.m.) that I will pay more attention to the show this season. I promise.

"The Dead Zone" returns for a brand new season Sunday at 10 p.m. on USA. This will officially make Sunday night on USA the destination for comfort food TV.

That's all for today. Don't forget to post your category suggestions for the 2006 Amy Awards to the graffiti board. These are your awards. I'll be back next Monday to talk about Simon Cowell's new series "America's Got Talent," process the current season of "Rescue Me" and announce the categories for the 2006 Amy Awards. Have a question, seen a familiar face, have an inside scoop or want to nominate a quote of the week? Write me at amytvgal@zap2it.com